Voters to decide Hatboro library tax question Tuesday

Friday

The Union Library of Hatboro could be funded through a .55-mill tax instead of an annual appropriation by Hatboro's council if the ballot question passes on Tuesday.

Hatboro voters will decide Tuesday whether the local public library will be funded through a new dedicated tax or continue its annual appropriation from the borough council.

The new tax fund of .55-mill could mean the Union Library of Hatboro's annual budget would receive more than $212,600 in annual funding, nearly $130,000 more a year than currently appropriated out of the borough general fund.

While Pennsylvania is a closed primary state, meaning only registered Democrats and Republicans can vote for candidates on their respective parties' ballots, all voters may vote in the referendum, regardless of party affiliation.

Michael Celec, spokesman for the Yes Hatboro Library Committee that is campaigning for the referendum, said Thursday the new funding source would stabilize the library's budget and allow the library to pursue grant funding.

Celec, who is also the director of the 264-year-old library at 243 S. York Road, said he was not speaking for the library or its executive board in any official capacity.

The borough has given the library $83,000 from Hatboro's general fund in 2018 and 2019, and about $76,000 for years before that, Celec said.

Library funding has been handled like this for the last several decades, and while Celec said there is no indication that funding is in jeopardy in the foreseeable future it also isn't guaranteed.

Information at www.yeshatborolibrary.org, the committee's website, states the library, which has been included on the National Register of Historic Places since 1980, is also one of the most underfunded libraries in Montgomery County.

"Increases in the library's budget haven't always kept up with the increases in the cost of operations," the website states.

The site adds the dedicated funding through the tax, costing the average tax payer just under $70 a year, would allow the library to "modernize, improve current offerings and to stay open for more hours each week."

The primary on Tuesday is the only time the ballot question will be up for a vote, which Celec said he is "fairly confident" will pass.

The committee collected more than 263 signatures between Feb. 19 and March 12 to get the referendum on the ballot, and Celec said the committee's campaign has seen a groundswell of support.

Borough council members, residents and state Rep. Tom Murt, R-152, are among the list of endorsements the committee's website lists.

Murt has said the library was an important community asset for Hatboro in need of more money.

"Just like we have to update things around the house, free public libraries need to be updated themselves," Murt, a library patron, said in February.

Celec added that most of the opposition the committee has encountered appeared to be against a new tax in general, but not against the library funding specifically.

Some social media posts have suggested the library pursue state grants to supplement its budget, but Celec said grant requirements under the library's current budget presents a challenge.

Many state grants the library could apply for require as much as a 50 percent match, a cost the library's current budget can't cover.

Celec said the library board does plan to apply for "every possible grant dollar," but added "you can't apply for it if you can't match it."

The tax would take effect at the start of 2020 if approved, and Celec said the earliest funds would likely be available is after the first quarter of the year.

The library may need to ask the council for funding for the first quarter of 2020, but Celec said specifics on how to fund the three-month gap would need to be discussed at a future council meeting.

A copy of the ballot question can be found at www.montcopa.org.

Polls open statewide from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday.

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